"End of an era" is an overused trope,
but in this case it’s appropriate: The last of the old Southern
Democrats is gone.

Sen. Robert Byrd had long since repented, of course.
The West Virginian, who died Monday at 92, deeply regretted
his segregationist past, which included a year as a member of the Ku
Klux Klan and at least several more years as
a Klan sympathizer. He eventually became a passionate advocate for
civil rights, and he was one of the most vocal
supporters of legislation making the birthday of the Rev. Martin Luther
King Jr. a national holiday.

But that was after Byrd’s personal
enlightenment. Amid what is sure to be a flood of heartfelt encomiums
to his
lifetime of public service, it is important to note that his is a story
of change and redemption - and that Byrd and
his party had a shameful past to overcome...

Byrd’s trajectory - from bitter segregationist
to beloved dean of the Senate - is actually a hopeful, quintessentially
American story. He was a man of his age, and his views on race closely
tracked the views of the constituents he so
loyally represented. There was a time when separate-but-unequal was a
mainstream position among whites in the South,
and the fact that Byrd’s early words and deeds are so shocking
today is a testament to how far the nation has come.

Note:That text
should be blue, but the color thing only works sometimes on this new
page building program, Nvu.

Why can't America make a page builder
that fucking works?

My old Netscape 4.7 from 1996 worked perfectly and it worked
every damn time.
but Bill Gates has decided that shit that works isn't "compatible" with
Microsteal.